DURHAM — While so many things have changed for Brandon Connette during the past few days, he can’t envision his mentality going in any other direction.

It’s straight ahead for Duke’s new first-string quarterback.

“Even if I’ve got the first down, I don’t think there’s a way I’m sliding,” Connette said of the notion that he might need to avoid contact more in his revised role. “I don’t think I’ve ever slid in my football career. I don’t think I ever see that happening unless Coach (David) Cutcliffe forces me to and even then it would be difficult to do.”

Cutcliffe said Tuesday that he’ll discuss several topics — and perhaps the aforementioned one — with Connette prior to the Blue Devils’ Atlantic Coast Conference opener Saturday against visiting Georgia Tech.

Connette, a redshirt junior, is Duke’s new starter because Anthony Boone suffered a broken collarbone last week at Memphis. It’s likely Boone will be out for at least a month.

So instead of Connette being used in a so-called phantom role when he lined up at different positions — receiver, tight end, running back – it will be more clear where he’ll be. He’s taking snaps.

Yet, he said he’s fully prepared for this.

“It was really nice being able to go through all summer and fall camp to focus in on doing quarterback stuff,” Connette said. “Not worry so much about the tight end stuff and running back stuff. That really helped me get back in the mindset of being a quarterback.”

Connette guided the Blue Devils to three second-half touchdowns against Memphis, so that should have been a nice boost the collective confidence of the offense. He has been involved plenty in the past, just not as the primary quarterback.

“I’ve always had a comfort level out there on the field,” he said. “I think one of the things it has done is it has given (my teammates) a comfort level with me. They have confidence I know what I’m doing on the field. They know I’m not going to go out there screwing things up.”

Shoulder injuries curtailed some of Connette’s development. He said he maintained an outlook that he needed to be ready to step in as Duke’s quarterback.

“It’s something I had always worked toward,” he said. “But I just really enjoy being on the field and being part of the team.”

While he learned other positions, he said he always studied from a quarterback’s perspective.

“Even if you’re playing another position, if you prepare like you’re the starting quarterback you’ll know exactly what’s going on,” he said.

Page 2 of 2 - Offensive guard Dave Harding said the Blue Devils like Connette’s approach and he doesn’t expect to see the quarterback involved in reckless sequences.

“We knew we had a very capable backup in Brandon Connette,” Harding said. “Brandon knows he has to be smart. We’ve talked about that. But that’s the kind of player he is, he’s an aggressive player.”

If Cutcliffe needs to convince Connette to tame his aggressive, contact-inducing maneuvers, the coach might be responsible for giving the go-ahead previously.

“One of the things Coach Cutcliffe and Coach (Kurt) Roper (the offensive coordinator) have really stressed with me is to not change who I am when I go onto the field,” Connette said.